Jinger courting?

[calimojo]

The whole family is opportunistic if you think about it. Well maybe not the little kids, but basically, that is how JB and M have survived, is through making the most of opportunities.

I don't think Jessa is more or less opportunistic than the rest of them. A lot of assumptions are made with little backing, which is part of the fun of speculating, I guess.

If Jessa were truly opportunistic to an extreme, then I really don't believe she would have married Ben. Jessa is a beautiful girl, from a well known family. I imagine she could have cast her eyes on many other Fundie royalty types or other conservative Christian types who would have had more money, and more opportunities for them. Ben may be a nice guy, ( who knows), but outside of the show, he is not well known, or from a well known family. He is just your basic guy, only he has no obvious career path or prospects outside of being JB errand boy. He is not the kind of kid that an opportunistic young woman is going to want to marry. Make out with, Have sex with maybe, but not marry.

So, my only thought on it is that Jessa does love him, albeit, likely in a naive and unrealistic way. She doesn't really stand to gain much from the union. Ben, on the other hand, stands to gain a great deal by the union. He has fame, his family now has some measure of fame, he is getting paid, and has the possibility of a future income from continuing on the show, selling off their baby's first piccies, making appearances, etc. Not saying he married her just for the fame, but I do believe that it is hard to separate where his feelings for her begin and end and where his feelings about getting to be on the show, etc begin and end.

I feel that less with Derick. I think he is on the show because he has to be. He may enjoy it from time to time, but I think if he was told he didn't really need to do the show anymore, he would be ok with that. He probably is practical enough about finances to realize the financial benefit of making appearances on the show, but I just don't think he seeks it. I could be completely wrong though. I guess it will all depend on how the coverage of her pregnancy and childbirth next season.

[FJismyheadship]

I think the pregnancy and childbirth coverage also depends on Jill. She may want to show all that. I guess it depends on how often Derick makes an appearance.

I am certain that no filming will be at WalMart HQ because of their strict rules about photos in the workplace.

[Mama Mia]

I guess I can understand the sibling rivalry idea. That Jessa, or any of them, might be jealous of the mansion or luxuries that a Tim Tebow could bring .

Although I'm not sure that their levels of fame and income are that different, now that he's not playing anymore. But I'm not a sports person, so I don't know. FWIW The Duggar daughter's show up a lot on my fb newsfeed --Tim Tebow never has.

Even if they were poor, I think there's a really HUGE difference between even the most ambitious sister wishing she had her sister's things, and wishing she had a different husband so she could get those things.

My personal idle speculation is that Jessa is plenty ambitious - but not as much in a material way. I think she and Ben plan to be a power ministry couple. They are very good looking -- which helps with everything in life---and, more importantly, they both seem extremely passionate about their beliefs. I don't agree with the vast majority of those beliefs -- but they sure seem to sincerely believe them. And they both state that's one of the things that drew them to each other when they started talking. I think it's easy for us to dismiss them, because we don't agree with them, but it seems to be important to them as a couple.

Also, the times that Jessa has appeared especially impatient with her parents or the crew is when someone is doing something to make them appear like hillbillies or freaks. I think she wants to present them as modern, stylish, normal people. Because that makes their extremely, extremely conservative belief system seem normal. But that's just my own idle speculation take on it.

[straygoldfish]

I would think, at least in their family, they'd try to squash any of those feelings in themselves pretty quickly. I mean, wouldn't coveting a sibling's partner and house/stuff break at least 1 or 2 of the 10 commandments? :penguin-no:

[Four is Enough]

I don't think Jessa would be jealous if Jana landed a bona fide rich celebrity. As a sister myself, I've never been remotely interested in the men my sister dated and eventually married. Never wished for any of her homes, even when one was much nicer than the one I was in. We had different lives and different circumstances.

[CorruptionInc.]

I don't think Jessa would be jealous if Jana landed a bona fide rich celebrity. As a sister myself, I've never been remotely interested in the men my sister dated and eventually married. Never wished for any of her homes, even when one was much nicer than the one I was in. We had different lives and different circumstances.

I am the same. Each sibling is different. We all live very different lives and we're not jealous of one or the other. My brothers' wife though... different story.

[Mel314]

I am the same. Each sibling is different. We all live very different lives and we're not jealous of one or the other. My brothers' wife though... different story.

You're right we all live in different circumstances, which is exactly the point about the Duggars. They don't live in the same world we live in. They were raised in a very sheltered life up until recent, how can any young adult really deal with being in the spotlight? Jessa has almost one million followers on instagram, and right now Jim Bob is worth 3.5 million dollars.

Thats not the world most of us live in. Their prime examples are Jim Bob and Michelle, constant spotlight seekers. JB and Michelle also take away the spotlight from their children in key moments, which I bet has been happening all their lives. I'm not saying there is no chance Jessa could be humble and love her man, but they live in the spotlight now and seem to enjoy it. If they didn't care about their public perception, and they didn't enjoy the spotlight, they would stop doing the show, get off social media, etc. But oops, they sort of can't now because it's their means of income.

Guess how much more money they'd make if one of the Duggar girls married another semi celebrity. These kids are literally being taught by example and experience that more = better (because more = $$$ to support their lifestyle)

[CorruptionInc.]

You're right we all live in different circumstances, which is exactly the point about the Duggars. They don't live in the same world we live in. They were raised in a very sheltered life up until recent, how can any young adult really deal with being in the spotlight? Jessa has almost one million followers on instagram, and right now Jim Bob is worth 3.5 million dollars.

Thats not the world most of us live in. Their prime examples are Jim Bob and Michelle, constant spotlight seekers. JB and Michelle also take away the spotlight from their children in key moments, which I bet has been happening all their lives. I'm not saying there is no chance Jessa could be humble and love her man, but they live in the spotlight now and seem to enjoy it. If they didn't care about their public perception, and they didn't enjoy the spotlight, they would stop doing the show, get off social media, etc. But oops, they sort of can't now because it's their means of income.

Guess how much more money they'd make if one of the Duggar girls married another semi celebrity. These kids are literally being taught by example and experience that more = better (because more = $$$ to support their lifestyle)

I have no idea what world the Duggars live in, I just know it's not the real world!

[antwan]

I agree... It looks like someone in a dark shirt might be behind Jinger, but I don't think there is an arm around her.

I also think those heart necklaces are symbolic of something and she doesn't have one... yet.

I think they're from "Journey to the Heart", and they are probably required to whittle them from gen-u-wine North Woods birch bark. :lol4:

[RosyDaisy]

There has got to be some significance to the heart necklaces. We know Jill's was a courtship gift from Derrick. Jessa also had one around the same time. Now Jana has one. If they ere from JTTH, then Jinger and Joy should have one too.

[singsingsing]

Jana has had that heart necklace for well over a year. It's not new. She has said multiple times in the past few months that she's not courting.

[FreeHannie!]

I know someone who was seeing a very well known hockey player.

No amount of money could make the 'WAG' lifestyle appealing to me.

[actuallyjessica]

Jana has had that heart necklace for well over a year. It's not new. She has said multiple times in the past few months that she's not courting.

to be fair, right before we found out about derick the family was asked if anyone else besides jessa was courting and they always said no, until one of the little kids said "jill!" so... there's that.

jana doesn't strike me as someone who would want her relationship over the media.

[DuggarsTheEndIsNear]

to be fair, right before we found out about derick the family was asked if anyone else besides jessa was courting and they always said no, until one of the little kids said "jill!" so... there's that.

jana doesn't strike me as someone who would want her relationship over the media.

To be fair, I think they were going to wait until right before the season started to announce it anyways. That happened the same time as the picture surfaced, and within 3 days they were confirming it without addressing the fact that there had been speculation. And, unlike with Ben, they had already made Derick the feature of the season.

There's no way that Jana's been courting for over a year without being discovered. And, I believe that heart necklace has made its rounds with the other girls, as well.

[Georgiana]

I give the Duggars a pass on lying/hiding courtships. The kids never really asked to be in this. They were thrown in when they were young, and while many of them are over 18 and could "technically" leave, that's really not a practical pathway unless they also want to give up their entire lives. I get that some of them may not want their courtships televised/in the spotlight until they feel really secure. I wouldn't either. Like Ben and Jessa, I think there are some moments best left private. And I actually think it's great that TLC/JB and M would be willing to let the kids hide the courtships if they want.

So if they lie about someone courting, I think that's fine. I don't think anyone really realized the fallout of what being on TLC so long would mean, and if now they have to blur a few lines to allow their children to live semi-normal lives, I see nothing morally reprehensible about that.

In fact, a nun once taught me that it is appropriate to lie to protect the lives/rights of others OR in cases where the requester does not have any right to the information. I think there are better ways to handle it (for example JB and M making a statement that they will announce courtships when the time is right, but will not discuss them until that point to protect the privacy of the people involved), but I don't see anything terribly wrong with this either.